India, June 21 -- Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday stirred attention by revealing that he had declined an invitation from former U.S. President Donald Trump to visit Washington, choosing instead to travel to Odisha - the land of Lord Jagannath.

Speaking at a rally in Bhubaneswar, Modi said, "While I was attending the G7 Summit in Canada, President Trump called and invited me to Washington for a meeting and lunch. I respectfully thanked him but told him I must go to Odisha - the sacred land of Lord Jagannath - and humbly declined his invitation."

The Prime Minister was in Odisha to mark the first anniversary of the BJP's first-ever state government and to inaugurate development projects worth over Rs.18,600 crore.

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